Yesterday evening I removed everything from the iPad directly related to “me”in the process converting it from “mine” to “ours”. When I bought it, I knew this day would come, because of a simple truth; iOS (the iPad and iPhone operating system) does not support multiple users.
For blogging, social networks, twittering, writing, sharing, reading, and so on I will continue to live with the mobile phone and netbook. I will continue to go sit in the study at the desktop if I want to get anything half-serious done.
The major beneficiary of the iPad will be our youngest daughter, who has numerous developmental delays caused by her early life. During the formative months of her life before she was rescued by social services and adopted by us, she was confined to a stroller. At two years old she had never walked, played, or talked.
The last four years have been a huge struggle that we have fought pretty much privatelytrying to give her every chance we possibly canbuilding the foundation, the help, the encouragement and the surroundings to help her catch up.
The iPad was bought partly with her in mind. The educational software available for it is excellent, and perhaps most importantly uses the touch interface. For a child still learning the fine motor skills required to translate thoughts onto paper, keyboards and touch interfaces give her access to much of the real world information we take for granted.
Suddenly the little girl who used to look through you, and daydream is engaged, interested, volunteering ideas, and wanting to find out more.
Of course once the children go to bed, the iPad turns into “Mum and Dads”, as it did last night, when W discovered the Scrabble and Monopoly apps. On second thoughts, scratch “Dads” from that sentence I’ve lost it already.